Charges filed in human arson

A Leeward Oahu man is accused of setting his girlfriend ablaze

A 50-year-old Honokai Hale man was charged yesterday with second-degree attempted murder for allegedly setting his girlfriend on fire last Thursday after pouring gasoline over her.

Kim R. Massey was also charged with first-degree arson and is being held in lieu of $100,000 bail.

The woman was taken to Straub Clinic & Hospital in critical condition with first-degree burns covering her face, arms and back. She was in stable condition and underwent another surgery yesterday, Detective Gary Lahens said.

The woman told police she and Massey were arguing over selling personal property, and they returned to the bedroom of their home located at 92-391 Waiomea St.

Massey allegedly poured a cold liquid, which smelled like gasoline, over the woman's back, face and arms and the bed, police said in a court document.

Massey then allegedly grabbed and flicked on a cigarette lighter the woman was holding, and she was suddenly engulfed in flames, police said in a written statement. The woman yelled and rolled on the ground in an attempt to put out the fire.

Massey told a fire investigator he tripped while carrying a can of gasoline to light a kerosene lamp, but the burn patterns and the woman's injuries did not match Massey's statement, police said.

The woman was at first unable to talk to authorities due to her injuries. Lahens credited the keen observations of fire investigator Scot Seguirant in his investigation of the scene.

The entire upper floor was burned, causing an estimated $65,000 in damage.